THERE were 102 pirate attacks worldwide in the first three months of this year, twice the number in the first three months of last year.

The jump can be blamed on the gun-toting buccaneers in the Aden Gulf and off the Somali coast, who pulled off half of those attacks.

The area is now the leading piracy hotspot - the number of raids there in the first quarter was 10 times that in the same period last year.

The London-based International Maritime Bureau (IMB) also noted in its latest report released on Tuesday that the pirate attacks there are also highly likely to be accompanied by hostage taking: Of the 179 hostages taken in hits worldwide, 88 per cent came from attacks in the region.

As of Monday, suspected Somali pirates were reported to be holding 17 vessels for ransom and 292 seamen hostage.

The world has responded by despatching 45 warships to the region. The Chinese, Japanese and Indian navies, among others, are there; last month, Singapore sent 240 men, a naval vessel and two Super Puma helicopters to the area.

The presence of the international flotilla in this vital trade waterway appears to have made a difference: Where, in January, one in six vessels was hijacked, the number fell to one in 13 last month.

The IMB report quoted United Nations chief Ban Ki-moon as having said that the piracy attacks will only cease when order is restored Somalia.

Meanwhile, closer to home, the Malacca Straits recorded one attack in February, in which a dozen pirates armed with rifles boarded a tug towing a barge, looted the crew's belongings and then kidnapped ship's master and chief officer. Both were released a few days later, after an undisclosed ransom was paid.

Capt Choong noted that such attacks were rampant in 2003, but stopped when the countries in the region began coordinated patrols in mid-2005.

Read the full story in Wednesday's edition of The Straits Times.